Black Caps cricket captain Kane Williamson has hailed the middle order batting heroics of Mitchell Santner and man of the match BJ Watling after New Zealand beat England by an innings and 65 runs.
BJ Watling. Photo: PHOTOSPORT
Look back at how the match unfolded here.
The victory at Bay Oval in Mount Maunganui gives New Zealand a one-nil lead in the two Test series.
"There was a huge amount of heart from that middle-order batting unit to get us to the 600 mark, which was our only opportunity to get us a win," Williamson told Sky Sport.
"For them to bat for 200 overs was an outstanding effort."
All-rounder Santner played a supporting role to New Zealand's top run-scorer wicketkeeper Watling and Williamson praised Santner's break-out Test batting innings.
"The talent's always been there... in his own mind, to spend so much time at the crease [and] to come away with his first Test hundred along with BJ Watling's first double was a magnificent contribution."
Watling was named player of the match after scoring his first double hundred.
He scored 205 from 473 balls over 11 hours, a feat Williamson that said needed application and focus and was just what the Black Caps required.
Watling credited his teammates for helping to get New Zealand to a total England could not chase down.
"The key was to get partnerships, and the boys stuck in there at the end. We tried to build as much of a lead as possible and hoped the wicket would do funny things on day five," he said.
England captain Joe Root said his side needed to put more runs on the board to be competitive.
Mitchell Santner Photo: PHOTOSPORT
"We missed an opportunity [in the first innings] if we're brutally honest with ourselves," Root said
"Could have done with a score over 450, and using that scoreboard pressure as another fielder. We did a lot of good stuff, we just need to do it for longer - it's not going to happen overnight."
Looking ahead to the second Test which starts on Friday in Hamilton, Root was confident England were heading in the right direction.
"We have to be honest with ourselves, not panic... the guys are putting in a lot of hard work behind the scenes. We've got an opportunity to level things up," he said.
Williamson left the field on day five due to a "niggle" but said after the match he was "ok".
However, bowler Trent Boult is to have a scan on injured ribs and may be in doubt for the second Test.
The two-match series is not part of the ICC World Test Championship so no points will go towards the competition.
